Craig Ferguson announced on April 28 he will step down as host of CBS’ Los Angeles-based The Late Late Show in December.
“CBS and I are not getting divorced, we are ‘consciously uncoupling,’ but we will still spend holidays together and share custody of the fake horse and robot skeleton, both of whom we love very much,” Ferguson quipped, referring to the prop characters that appear on his show.
It was not immediately clear if the show will continue with a new host once Ferguson, 51, departs.
“During his 10 years as host, Craig has elevated CBS to new creative and competitive heights at 12:30,” Nina Tassler, chair of CBS Entertainment stated in response to Ferguson’s announcement. “He infused the broadcast with tremendous energy, unique comedy, insightful interviews and some of the most heartfelt monologues seen on television.”
The Scottish-born Ferguson announced the news during the taping of his April 28 show. The show is taped at CBS Television City in the Fairfax District.
Ferguson’s work on The Late Late Show earned the program a Peabody Award.
Prior to joining the late night talk show circuit in 2005, Ferguson was best known for portraying office boos Nigel Wick on The Drew Carey Show between 1996 and 2004.
Ferguson also appeared or starred in several films, including several as a voice actor. In films such as The Ugly Truth, Kick-Ass, and I’m Here To Help, Ferguson portrayed himself. He also served as the voice of key characters in How to Train Your Dragon, Winnie the Pooh, Brave, Big Top Scooby-Doo!, and How to Train Your Dragon 2.
Earlier this year, Ferguson served as guest host of The Price is Right; he also has a recurring role on TV Land’s Hot in Cleveland.
The late night talk show has been ripe with changes in 2014. Earlier this year, Jay Leno ended his run as host of NBC’s The Tonight Show, opening the door for the program to shift to New York City. There, Jimmy Fallon moved from competing with Ferguson in the 12:30 a.m. slot to succeeding Leno as The Tonight Show host.
After Fallon moved up an hour, Seth Meyers took over as host of NBC’s Late Night.
Ferguson’s impending departure comes only weeks after the other CBS late night host announced his retirement. On April 3, David Letterman announced he would retire from Late Show at some point in 2015. It was later announced by CBS that Stephen Colbert of Comedy Central’s The Colbert Report would succeed Letterman.
Additional reporting by Parimal M. Rohit
